Kitchen Design Ideas for Fall

The colors of fall and spring are, to me, the most noticeable and welcoming. With that being said, home interior stores run wild during this time of the year with decorations. Not only does it create that cozy, homey feel that people love, but it is also a celebration of the season.

Kitchen Design Ideas for the Fall

Buying new furniture and decorations every year can certainly add up in the long run…or the short run depending on how much you like to shop. But there are certain elements of the home that can be updated to create that same feeling that home décor stores seem to capture.

According to HGTV, chairs are the most commonly updated item in the kitchen. They can easily be painted or reupholstered to match any season of the year.

Fall foliage is another great, and small, item that can capture the look and feel of autumn. For a cheap and effective kitchen design idea, just wrap some candles in corn husks, make use of pinecones, faux oak leaves and pumpkins (real or fake) throughout your home. If you’re feeling artistic, you can even make paper leaves and utilize them in fun and interesting ways in various rooms.

Candles and wreaths also spruce up the home. It is incredibly easy to find a candle that displays fall colors and the same goes for wreaths. Wreaths can often be made with pinecones or fall foliage and are also a great and affordable kitchen design idea.

For all of your kitchen design ideas, Signature Kitchens has the kitchen elements to match. From cabinets and drawers made of real wood to small and large elements that can transform your kitchen, Signature Kitchens in Northern Virginia is a fantastic choice when it comes to your kitchen remodeling project.

Visit Signature Kitchens showroom in Haymarket, Virginia today!

For more great kitchen design ideas from HGTV, click here

 

Kitchen Design Ideas for Autumn

There is something about Fall that I love and can never quite put my finger on it. After 6 months or so of being outside during spring and summer, the weather does everything it can to force us back inside. But when a home, and especially the kitchen, are decorated for the Fall season, being inside is homey, nostalgic, and even enjoyable. 

Kitchen Design Ideas

Fall colors, especially earth tones, have a comforting quality about them and give us memories of Thanksgiving and good food.

As many home owners in Northern Virginia are preparing for their kitchen remodeling projects before the winter, begin to think about your Fall decorations in the meantime. Once the kitchen remodeling project is complete, you will be left with a completely clean and probably empty kitchen. It’s like a clean slate.

Earth tones are great for placemats, candles, and other little accessories throughout the kitchen. A good friend of mine used small twigs and fake leaves to wrap around candle holders and even chandeliers to give that extra autumn look, and is a great, inexpensive kitchen design idea.

We would love to see how you have decorated your kitchen! Feel free to post any photos to our Facebook wall along with decorating tips and kitchen design ideas.

For all of your kitchen remodeling projects this winter, contact Signature Kitchens in Haymarket, Virginia.

Why Choose Signature Kitchens?

Signature Kitchens has been providing quality services throughout Northern Virginia for over 25 years. A majority of that time has been spent serving loyal, satisfied home builders, and more recently, our kitchen design services became available directly to the public.

This has made it easier for locals in Northern Virginia and Maryland to get a one-on-one experience with professional kitchen designers and manufacturers at Signature Kitchens.

When searching for a kitchen design expert, Signature Kitchens has everything you need, which is one of benefits of dealing with a manufacturer.

Kitchen Designer – when you deal with Signature Kitchens, you have direct access to a kitchen designer who assists in the layout, design and installation of your kitchen project.

Services – kitchen design, kitchen cabinet installation, cabinet refacing and more, Signature Kitchens offers everything you need to completely renovate your kitchen no matter how big or small the project may be.

Kitchen Showrooms – there are 3 kitchen showrooms located in the Washington, DC area for our customer’s convenience. Our guests are able to look and use the quality wood craftsmanship that Signature Kitchens offers its home builders and direct customers.

All-in-1 – With Signature Kitchens you work with one company. Everything from the manufacturing, design and installation is done within the company so you never have to run back and forth between customer service reps from other companies.

With so many great services being offered, it’s no wonder Signature Kitchens has been the premier kitchen design company in Northern Virginia and Maryland for so long. Come see for yourself at one of our kitchen design showrooms!

Remodeling & Renovation: What's the Difference?

As a homeowner looking to take on a new project, it is important that you understand exactly what you are getting into and how to express that to those involved. To better explain your new project to contractors, service providers and even building supplies retail centers, we’ll take a look at some very common home improvement terms that are used constantly throughout the industry.

Kitchen Remodeling

Kitchen remodeling, or remodeling in general, is a fairly broad term that is used to describe any change to a house. Remodeling carries with it a heavier weight and can often represent a major undertaking. For example, a kitchen remodeling project may involve combining the dining room and the kitchen into one room. This is becoming an extremely popular kitchen remodeling project as it involves a complete transformation of not one but two rooms.

Kitchen Renovation

Smaller scale projects can be categorized as renovations. A renovation is a project that would involve making the room appear new again. Not a complete overhaul, but updating the existing fixtures and overall look of the room. In a kitchen renovation project, you may see cabinet refacing being done, new appliances or light fixtures, or even new flooring. It is essentially taking what exists currently and revitalizing it.

Knowing the difference between these two types of home improvement projects will allow you to communicate your needs and concerns more effectively with building contractors and retail outlets. For all of your kitchen remodeling and kitchen renovation needs, contact Signature Kitchens in Haymarket, Virginia.

Kitchen Remodeling: Enormous Resale Value

In the last few blogs I wrote about the increasing popularity of kitchen remodeling and some of the latest trends. How the kitchen is no longer just a room to cook and eat in, but has become a multipurpose space functioning as the home office, dining room, and the central hub of your home.

Other than the visual appeal that complete kitchen remodeling projects bring, there is a much bigger reason that you should consider updating the most important room in your home: resale value.

Remodeling magazine’s 2011-2012 Cost vs. Value Report stated that minor kitchen remodels, including new countertops, appliances, and cabinet refacing, see a national average of receiving a 72% return on investment. Major kitchen remodeling projects including flooring, lighting and cabinet installation see nearly a 66% return on investment.

These numbers are enormous. Nearly 70% of the money you invest into your kitchen, whether cabinet refacing, new countertops and the like, will be returned to you upon the sale of your home. The more current the design and functionality of your kitchen the better. Having your home up to date on the latest trends can add a ton of value to your home’s worth making for an easier sale in the long run and an enjoyable environment while you are still living in the home, as well.

Signature Kitchens specializes in complete kitchen remodeling jobs, as well as minor kitchen renovations, and everything in between: cabinet refacing, cabinet installation, custom pieces, etc. For all of your kitchen makeover needs, contact Signature Kitchens in Northern Virginia today.

Kitchen Remodeling by Signature Kitchens

Kitchen Design Ideas: The Latest Trends

Recently, Zillow, a real estate focused website, wrote an article outlining the latest kitchen design ideas and trends. As I have mentioned before, they too state that the kitchen has become so much more than what it used to be. It functions not only as a place to prepare food, but as your entertainment hub during social events, your workspace, and also a dining room. With this trend taking a drastic shift from previous years, now is a great time to consider kitchen remodeling.

Why Kitchen Remodeling in This Economy?

According to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) the current economic market has lead to cutbacks in other areas of home design and overall room size, but kitchens continue to see more attention in both design and use; one reason being that kitchens, along with bathrooms, are an essential part of the home. New kitchen design ideas are taking hold as home offices become less popular, and desk work is being done around the kitchen table. The AIA says that 43 percent of architects polled saw an increase in demand for computer areas in the kitchen. Here is a home we remodeled in Herndon, Virginia.

Kitchen remodeling projects and new homes are seeing extended countertops to handle other non-typical-kitchen tasks and floor space is being added to expand the overall size. The kitchen is becoming the main source of foot traffic in the home and the room where residents spend the most amount of time.

If you see that your own lifestyle reflects the current trend, now is the perfect time for kitchen remodeling. You’re spending the most time in your kitchen, so it requires the most upkeep and attention! Call Signature WoodCrafters for affordable solutions for your kitchen remodeling project!

Great Way to Get Some Kitchen Design Ideas this Easter!

If you or your family celebrate Easter, then get ready – because it's this weekend. Every once in a while a holiday comes around that is known for its wonderfully-made, home-cooked dinners, and Easter is one of those holidays. As friends and family members flood your home this weekend, pay special attention to just how busy your kitchen gets; not just with cooking, but with socializing. Your kitchen is sure to be the focal point of a social event, and if you have been wanting to have your kitchen remodeled, now is a great time to keep your eyes open for kitchen design ideas.

Our kitchen remodeling contractors are more than happy to work with you every step of the way to make sure that your dream kitchen becomes a reality. However, the process begins a few steps before that. First you have to know what you want!

This Easter holiday, pay attention to what aspects of your kitchen are inconvenient for you. Is your cabinet placement ideal? Could you really benefit from having an island or a butcher's block? What about a counter and chairs? The best kitchen design ideas will probably come from real life experience. Would you like people to crowd around a different area of your kitchen so you can be free to cook? Think about these things this holiday so you can accurately describe your concerns and preferences to our kitchen remodeling contractors.

It may be difficult, but I would even suggest keeping a list of your kitchen design ideas throughout the day. If you are anything like the members of my family, there is zero downtime in the kitchen and if you are trying to pay attention and remember each detail for the kitchen remodeling contractors, chances are you will forget without taking the time to write down a few ideas.

Have a safe and happy Easter and call Signature WoodCrafters for your kitchen remodeling project!

Home-Building Contractors - We save you money!

As a home builder, finding custom built kitchen cabinets at a reasonable price seems impossible. Not to mention paying for kitchen cabinet installation. However, having the perfect cabinets displayed in a home can be a major selling point, so you are often left with a tough decision: Do you pay top prices for high quality products, or do you buy cheap and hope for the best? Thanks to Signature WoodCrafters you don’t have to choose anymore.

Signature WoodCrafters supplies and installs fine kitchen cabinets for some of the top home builders in the Mid-Atlantic region. Unlike high-priced retail stores, we keep our prices low because we buy in volume and sell at wholesale prices. And since we manufacture and install our own products, you always have the benefit of dealing with one company for all your home building needs.

Having worked with home building contractors for 25 years, we have streamlined the custom kitchen design process and kitchen cabinet installation procedures. This financially benefits home builders as we work efficiently to provide the best prices and best service possible.

Signature WoodCrafters offers the personalized service and attention to detail that you would expect from a small business, and wholesale prices that rival large chains. The quality of our products is second to none and our passion for excellence is what has kept our customers loyal for 25 years.

If you are a home-building contractor, feel free to stop by and visit our showrooms so you can see and experience the unparalleled quality of our products.

Contact Signature WoodCrafters today. With better products and better prices, it’s an easy choice.

Kitchen Design Ideas

When you look around your kitchen, its cabinets and counter top, and finally decide that it is time to undergo a kitchen renovation, you are left with the daunting task of coming up with an entirely new design. Kitchen design ideas are seemingly endless and sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming as you begin to seriously decide on your kitchen renovation plans.

Where to Get Kitchen Design Ideas

If you are one of the lucky few who have a vision and a plan for your kitchen before you even begin the kitchen renovation project, count yourself lucky. Most people need to find inspiration for their kitchen design ideas. After all, kitchens are often thought of as the focal point in the home and people tend to congregate there during parties and social gatherings.

Kitchen design ideas can come from a number of places. One of the first places I would check out is our kitchen renovation photo gallery. There you will be able to view some great before-and-after photos of our previous work and draw some ideas from there.

Another great place to gather kitchen design ideas is at one of our 3 showrooms. Located in Haymarket, VA, Owings, MD and Elkridge, MD, these showrooms offer a ton of beautiful pieces to help inspire your own kitchen renovation. There you will be able to speak with members of our crew who will be able to point you in the right direction and offer their expertise in kitchen renovation.

Of course there are plenty of websites and magazines you can look at for kitchen design ideas as well, but sometimes for me, having the opportunity to see and touch the actual handcrafted pieces is much more inspirational when it comes to deciding on the perfect kitchen design ideas.

Stop by and visit us today, and we will be happy to show you around so you can begin your kitchen renovation project!

What You Can do to Your Kitchen for $1000

A lot of potential customers come to us not wanting to spend a lot of money on their kitchen.  They carry a belief that refacing - or our custom-made product recrafting - is going to get them the kitchen of their dreams on the cheap.  But more often than not, we have to break the bad news to them - their dream kitchen is going to cost money.  And in fact, it is going to cost you somewhere in between $10k to $20k.  Many people don't want to hear that.  They don't like to think that there are real costs associated with re-doing a kitchen well - and that these costs are actually extremely fairly priced in today's market.

BUT....there are things that you can do to update the look of your 30-yr old kitchen that don't have to break the bank.  Check out the before and after pictures and the project description that our VP of cabinetry worked on for her niece.

THE ISSUES:
1 - The kitchen has 30+yr old cabinets with a white dishwasher and range that were 5+years old and a refrigerator and range hood who's age has yet to be discovered.  Needless to say the appliances did not match.
2 - The shelf unit over the peninsula portion of the countertop created a huge division in the sightline and aesthetic flow of the room's space.
3 - The tile countertops were dirty and had missing or broken front edge tiles.
4 - The wall cabinets had an uneven bulkhead above them.

THE SOLUTION:
1 - White appliance paint changed the refrigerator and avocado green range hood to standard white, creating matching appliances throughout the kitchen space.
2 - The dividing shelf unit came down, opening up the space.
3 - The tiles on the front edge of the countertop came off and were replaced with a dark stained 2" wood trim.
4 - Large white crown moulding above the wall cabinets was added to bridge the gap between the ceiling and cabinets and both the trim and ceiling were painted white to match and create a unified sightline.

Water damage had caused the sink base doors to warp and be covered in water stains, while also causing the dishwasher and countertop to be unlevel.

The problems from the water damage were fixed with new birch plywood doors and drawer fronts and a brace that went underneath the cabinets to level the countertop and dishwasher.  New hardware was also added, completing the overall change in the look of the kitchen.

Some elbow grease, Murphy's Oil, clear lacquer, and clear poly finishes helped add polish and panache to the rest of the cabinetry.  Commercial tile and grout cleaner cleaned up the backsplash and counters.  The light fixture, sink, and faucet were all updated as well, creating the finished kitchen.  It goes to show just how much the look of a kitchen can change with the details and some cleaners. 

And meanwhile, you can save some dollars for when you actually want to design and create your dream kitchen :).

The Roy G. Biv of Kitchen Colors

Today we have a guest post from one of our new design interns, Molly Holland.  Molly is a recent graduate from Virginia Tech from their Bachelor of Science, Apparel, Housing and Resource Management program.

In the kitchen design world, it's not just about what cabinets to place in what area of the room.  I like to think it's designing an area where you can feel comfortable in and plan to keep for (hopefully) a lifetime.  Now with saying this, I don't mean that people are strictly forced to stick to one wall color or even one door style (ahem, Recrafting is done here at Signature WoodCrafters! :)).  People are allowed to change whatever they wish to, but right now, I have recently learned about the new trends in colors for kitchens.

While opening up my browser today at work, MSN.com flashed upon the screen with an article in the lifestyle area about the colors of the modern kitchen.  Since I'm a connoisseur of design and trend literature, I decided, why not give this article a read through?  To my disbelief, I realized that people are using crazy colors!  This plethora extends from bright, grass greens inspired by modern European sensibilities to plain, stark white English country kitchens.  These colors are endless throughout the slideshow of vibrant kitchens (as seen below from the article).

What I found so interesting, though, was the fact that people are now using bright colors for the insides of their cabinets, then placing glass on the doors.  What an intriguing idea...which makes me wonder, why didn't I think of that? Then again, that's how life goes in the design world, but now I am inspired to see that kitchens are no longer just natural wooden picturesque model rooms.  Oh no, they are painted with a never-ending rainbow of colors that obviously are the trend these days.  But before going down this route yourself, do remember one thing...how many coats of paint will it take to cover that grass green in three years?  Or do you want to start saving now for your next kitchen replacement! :)

Cabinet ReCraft: Herndon, VA

Kitchen ReCraft: Herndon, VA, originally uploaded by lauren_taggart1.

This was a kitchen recraft job that Signature WoodCrafters completed in Herndon, VA. The homeowners elected to go with our recrafting process versus our kitchen replacement process because they wanted to have their kitchen in use throughout the entire installation process.  So they kept their existing layout, revamped the look of the cabinets with our recrafting product, added new countertops, backsplash, and flooring.

Because of the bulkhead above, the homeowners decided that instead of adding the traditional crown moulding that most kitchens opt for, they would add lite rail moulding to the bottom of the cabinets, providing that little extra special detail to the new look of the kitchen. The end result is stunning.

BEFORE:



AFTER:





This picture really captures the detail in the lite rail moulding...beautiful...

Kitchen Remodel: Herndon, VA

Another View of Galley Kitchen, originally uploaded by lauren_taggart1.

Signature WoodCrafters took a small galley kitchen and transformed it into a beautiful new work of art. We used Century Cabinetry, new granite countertops, and a great backsplash to tie everything together!



Another "before" view...



Kitchen in Process...New Cabinetry installed!



Signature WoodCrafters helped to create some great storage solutions by adding a corner pantry cabinet and above refrigerator cabinets to the existing layout.




Transformed!  New countertops, backsplash, cabinets, and flooring all flow together in a beautiful piece of design work.  Cabinetry has been extended to the ceiling to create more height and storage space in the space.

What Can I do to my Kitchen for $1000?

Want to make an improvement to your home? Try starting with the kitchen.  Any upgrade made to your kitchen increases the overall value of your home (just try Googling "Kitchen Upgrades Add Value to Home" and see all articles that pop up!).  While upgrading your cabinetry adds the most value, not everyone has $10,000 for new, good quality cabinetry.  So what can you do with a fraction of that amount?  Check out some of these ideas, courtesy of Shine From Yahoo!, on how to update this room inexpensively:


1. Small Change
Instead of everything but the kitchen sink, how about just the kitchen sink? Replacing a dated faucet does wonders for overall style.

2. Surface Value
The whole kitchen will get a lift if you fit the island with a new marble or granite top. It’s far less expensive than refurbishing all the countertops, but adds a very high-end element to the kitchen.

3. Less Is More
Tiling an entire wall or backsplash can be a dollar-draining proposition. Instead, create a fancy medallion with clearance tiles that will pop on the existing wall color.

4. Soft Touch
Cover kitchen windows with basic cafe curtains instead of pricier blinds or layered treatments. A flounce or a valance up top and a half-curtain hung at the middle of the window frame is just enough for a kitchen.

5. Lighten Up
Adding new fixtures above an island or counter not only adds style, it improves lighting over key prep areas. Don’t be afraid to mix and match; just keep pieces unified with one consistent element, like a color or finish.

6. Quick Contemporary
Fake a modern makeover in three steps: Strip down old window treatments and leave windows bare, paint walls and woodwork a fresh trendy hue, and ditch stained wood barstools for plastic or metal seating.

7. Splash of Color
Try a focal wall painted in an unexpected hue to add a modern touch for under $20—you’ll only need a quart of paint! No-cost idea: Ask friends or neighbors if you can dip into their stashes of leftovers from their recent projects.

8. Bits & Pieces
Add color and texture with high-impact accessories. A new table runner, fruit bowl or set of countertop storage canisters can be an instant, low-commitment update.

Kitchen Design Trends for 2010

Wondering what the next big thing in kitchen design is going to be? Check out this latest press release from National Kitchen & Bath Association on their thoughts for what the year 2010 holds!